Couple Arrested after Shoplifting More Than $600 Worth of Merchandise

A Polk (Florida) couple were arrested after shoplifting hundreds of dollars’ worth of items from a Walmart store in Mulberry on Monday, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

Cleveland Carr, 41, and his live-in girlfriend, Jolene Parlett, 21, were arrested after loss prevention officers at the Walmart located on Church Avenue North caught them shoplifting more than $600 of clothing and shoes, the sheriff’s office said in a news release Tuesday.

Loss prevention officials told deputies that the couple were seen picking up clothing and shoes and putting them into their shopping cart, then Carr tried to leave with the stolen merchandise, according to Carrie Horstman, a PCSO spokeswoman.

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Walmart’s loss prevention people confronted Carr, and he told them he was trying to locate his girlfriend so they could pay for the items, Horstman said. Carr then started running and jumped into a waiting SUV, driven by Parlett, Horstman said.

Deputies caught up to the couple on South Florida Avenue just before 6 p.m. and performed a traffic stop, the sheriff’s office said. Several stolen hand-baskets from Walmart and Publix were found inside the vehicle, according to deputies… News Chief

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